Hlas' AP Top 25 ballot for Week 3

Nobody told me I was going to have to work this hard just filling out a simple Top 25 ballot.

USC loses at Washington. What to do with the Trojans? How do you drop them below Ohio State when they beat the Buckeyes in Columbus? It doesn't make sense.

I did it.

The logic is skewed. OSU's loss is a better loss than USC's loss, at Washington. The fact that OSU's loss is to USC is, uh, irrelevant. I guess.

I kicked Miami all the way up to seventh. I've been ahead of the curve on the Hurricanes since the preseason poll. Then they won at Florida State, which turned around and blasted BYU in Provo Saturday. And they whipped Georgia Tech, which was 14th in the Week 2 Top 25.

If the poll's supposed to be based on performance, and it is, I probably should have Miami No. 1.

On with the show:

1. Florida. Not super-impressive at home vs. Tennessee, but to me you're No. 1 until you've been beaten.

2. Texas. Had its first quality win, by 10 over Texas Tech.

3. Alabama. SEC play starts next week for the Tide.

4. California. Winning by 14 at Minnesota counts for something. Cal goes to Oregon next week, then hosts USC. If the Bears sweep, they're a national-title contender in the truest sense.

5. Penn State. Playtime is over. The Nittanies finally play someone when Iowa comes to town Saturday.

6. LSU. The Tigers play Georgia, Florida and Auburn in October.

7. Miami. Recap: A win at Florida State? Check. A home win against Georgia Tech? Check. So is this time for a pushover? Nix. The 'Canes go to Virginia Tech Saturday.

8. Mississippi. Hasn't beaten anyone, yet. Goes to South Carolina Saturday.

9. Boise State. Its 51-34 win at Fresno State Friday was defense-challenged, but it's still a win over a good program, and on the road. The home win over Oregon looks better in light of the Ducks' win over Utah Saturday.

10. Oklahoma. The loss to BYU may be the aberration of the year, including Washington's win over USC.

11. Ohio State. I should probably have booted the Buckeyes further down the list after USC lost at Washington.

12. USC. OK, why rank the Trojans and not UW when UW beat the Trojans? A lack of courage, I suppose. And the fact USC won at Ohio State while Washington lost at home to LSU and was outclassed in doing so.

13. Virginia Tech. Barely staved off Nebraska in Blacksburg. No shame in that.

14. TCU. Thought about pushing the Horned Frogs down the list just because it played Texas State Saturday.

15. Houston. I've been ripped for having the Cougars this high. Folks, Houston 45, home team Oklahoma State 35. Scoreboard.

16. Pittsburgh. Beat Navy sounder than Ohio State did.

17. Cincinnati. Performance. A huge win at Rutgers, and now a win at Oregon State, which was almost ranked itself last week.

18. Kansas. Hasn't defeated anyone of note, but plays 3-0 Southern Mississippi Saturday in Lawrence before starting Big 12 play.

19. Oklahoma State. This is still all about a two-TD win over Georgia in Stillwater. Cowboys host Grambling State Saturday. In the name of T. Boone Pickens, why?

20. Nebraska. A 1-point, last-minute loss at Virginia Tech is not shameful in the eyes of people in 49 states.

21. Missouri. The Tigers are at Nevada this week in an odd piece of scheduling. But hey, Colorado played at Toledo and Iowa State went to Kent State.

22. Georgia. 2-0 in the SEC after thrill-ride wins over South Carolina and Arkansas.

23. Florida State. The BCS thanks the Seminoles for not just eliminating BYU from national-title talk, but for burying the Cougars.

24. Michigan. Unbeaten. In perhaps the worst matchup of 3-0 teams this week, the Wolverines host Indiana.

25. Iowa. The eyeball test against Arizona said this is a Top 25 team. A more important test comes Saturday at Penn State.